Stories, Skills, and Know-How for Country Living

Stump Grinding: What’s the End Result?

If you’ve never used a stump grinder before, it can be hard to picture what the end result will be. You start with a stump, you end up with . . . what exactly? A crater? A pile of wood chips? You want to know before you invest in your own stump grinder and attack the pesky stumps on your property.

The end result is basically a pile of wood chips, with the stump itself shaved to ground level or below.

Below ground, the stump dissipates into a complex root system, usually emanating from one large taproot. When you grind away the aboveground stump, the taproot remains, but will eventually rot away. So you may still see the top of the taproot, even when the stump itself is ground away to an inch or two below ground level. This is easily covered with soil or sod, rendering it invisible.

The wood chips left behind from grinding the aboveground portion of the stump away can be brushed away, or left to decompose on their own.

Stump grinding is the single easiest, fastest way to remove stumps on your property. No waiting around for chemicals to work their magic, no digging roots out by hand. And the end result is as if there had never been a tree there to begin with.